Taking Chances
by DemonsandAngels
Summary: Stuck in a world where she's all alone, Jace can't help but push people away. She's lost everyone close to her. What happens, then, when a certain Flame Alchemist gets a little too close for her to handle? MustangXOC


**Chapter 1: I See Everything**

The wind was blowing at 14 miles per hour, running though my long auburn hair and whipping it about. The sun was high in the sky, right behind me. It warmed the exposed skin on my face and hand. From my vantage point, I could see the people below me walking about, oblivious to my existence that threatened their very livelihoods. It was a crowded town square; a fountain adorning the middle of the plaza where couples sat on the edge, holding hands, talking about the future. Trees scattered about to add a happy touch. The cobblestone beneath their feet smooth.

Using my binoculars, I easily spotted my target. From this building's fifth floor room, I set up my sniper rifle, leaning it against the window's ledge and taking aim. I was a good distance away, something none of the rookies would be able to do. It was an impressive distance. I took a deep breath before pulling the trigger, watching the bullet hit my target in the head, killing him upon impact.

It wasn't anything personal. This man had never done anything to me. But, he had seriously pissed off someone high up in the military. That, or he knew too much about something he shouldn't have known. I didn't ask. It was better if I knew less. The military worked on a need to know basis. Most of the time, I didn't need to know.

Packing up my gear, I threw everything into my backpack and headed out of the building, blending in with the crowd. There was mass panic as people were running out of the area, so it was easy for me to blend in. I was invisible.

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><p><strong>~.~<strong>

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><p>"We are transferring you to Central. The Fuhrer will have better use for you there. You'll be under the command of Colonel Roy Mustang," my superior briefed me. "Remember that you cannot at any time discuss anything that went on here. All they know is that you are a highly regarded sniper."<p>

I nodded in understanding, saluting him before being dismissed. Central. I hadn't been there in awhile. It would be a good change of pace, I was sure. Everything here was just dreary and routine. Boring. Or, maybe I was the boring one. Either way, I was getting the hell out of this place, but what I was excited about I didn't know.

Central, while a busy and more hoping city, would be more of the same as here. I'd be sent on secret missions and confined the precinct other times for paperwork. I'd get home late, get up early. The place and faces would be different, but everything else would be the same. Joy.

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><p><strong>~.~<strong>

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><p>As I got off the train, I looked around the platform for the military dogs that were supposed to be picking me up and bringing me to the base. There were so many people milling about. All so hurried, never really looking up, focused on their destinations. While I saw everything. Took in every person, noticed every flaw, could tell the distances between us. I was already calculating the different escape routes I could use and the different vantage points I could have if I would have to kill someone.<p>

Shifting my backpack to my other arm, I grabbed the suitcase and headed towards two men who were holding up signs with my name on them. One was a blonde haired guy smoking a cigarette. Why one would want to poison themselves with tobacco was beyond me. The other was a short, dark haired guy with glasses, what most people would say a dork. Kind of a cute dork, though.

"You're Jace Blocher?" the blonde haired one asked, eyeing me. His eyes lingered a second longer than necessary on my chest.

I kept my eyes trained on him, giving away no emotion whatsoever. It irked me that he was looking at me like I was a piece of meat, but I wasn't about to let my temper get the better of me. Not now. "What? Were you expecting someone else?" I asked, a hint of annoyance coated my words.

"No, of course not. We were just making sure," the dork assured me, arms raised in mock surrender. "I'mLt. Fuery, and this is Lt. Havoc. We'll be your escorts to Central headquarters. You can meet Colonel Mustang and then be brought to your new apartment."

I nodded in agreement and walked ahead of them, leaving my suitcase for one of them to carry. Without looking back, I headed to the car they had been standing in front, threw my bag into the trunk and got into the car, waiting for the two guys to catch up. It seemed the blonde was the driver, Havoc.

I leaned my head against the back of the seat as the guys got into the car and started it up. A smoky, awful, poignant smell hit my nose as Havoc lit another cigarette. Great. Was this guy a chain smoker? "Do you mind?" I asked, irritated. Crossing my legs, I glanced up at him through the rearview mirror.

"Mind what?" he asked, confused. Clearly, no one had ever called him out on his smoking habit.

"You smoking. I don't mind you slowly killing yourself, but would you mind not trying to kill me while you're at it?" I snapped, turning my attention to the traffic out the window not wanting to talk to Blondie anymore.

With an eye roll and a flick of his wrist, the cigarette was gone, thrown out the window. Silence ensued for most of the ride. Fuery tried to make small talk, but I never had been one for idle chatter. Stopping in front of a grand building, I was unimpressed with the structure. It was bigger than what I was used to, but bland looking from the outside.

Havoc informed me that I could leave my bags in the car while we went inside. Nodding, I followed them up the front steps and into the headquarters. There were soldiers walking about, secretaries filing, and people chatting. It had almost a homey feeling to it. I wondered how that felt since I was never in one place long enough to know what it was like.

"Here we go, Colonel Mustang's office," Fuery announced, knocking once before opening the door to a voice that ordered us to enter.

The room was big, with giant, bay windows for walls on the one side. We were on the upper level, and from this vantage point, I could easily remain unseen. There were couches and a coffee table in the center of the room with a big desk next to the window. A man with dark, black hair had his attention on a stack of papers at the moment, and a woman with blonde hair was pointing at something, telling him where to sign. He was fidgeting with the pen, his eyes darting down the paper, skimming the document. Paperwork was clearly his least favorite task. Not that I blamed him.

With a flick of his pen, he threw the paper to the side, where the woman gathered it up and put it together with a small stack of papers on the other side of the desk. The done pile. Standing, he walked around the desk to greet me. I stood at attention, saluting him. I was under his command now.

"First Lieutenant Blocher reporting, sir!" I stated, looking straight ahead, my eyes focusing on the glass, determining it was only a few centimeters thick. A bullet could break through quite easily.

"At ease, lieutenant," Mustang ordered, a sly smile gracing his lips upon giving me a once over. I mentally rolled my eyes. Another dog of a man looking at me as though I was a piece of meat. He was handsome in an arrogant kind of way, cocky and full of himself. Though, most girls seemed to like that.

Mustang held out his hand to the blonde woman, who handed him a file. Leaning back against his desk, he opened the folder and looked through it. "It says you're a masterful sniper. So's Hawkeye here," he pointed out, as if challenging how good I was. "You do missions for the Fuhrer?" he asked in surprise as he read farther down the document.

"Yes, sir," I nodded, not willing to divulge into what kind of missions they were. If he wanted to know, he'd ask me about it.

"You are quite the decorated soldier. Fought in the Ishbal War, huh?" he mused to himself. "Fought there myself."

I hoped he didn't press that topic further. It was a time in my life I was still trying desperately to forget. Unfortunately, times like this wiped away any advancements I had made with the forgetting. One really couldn't escape the past no matter how hard they ran or tried to change it.

"It was a dark time, sir. I wish not to discuss that matter further," I replied honestly, finally casting my eyes towards him. He was studying me intensely, as if trying to figure me out. I wasn't very hard to decipher. What you saw was what you got.

He nodded curtly, seemingly understanding what I meant. "Well, I look forward to seeing your skills in action. Tomorrow, report bright and early to the practice range. I like to see what my subordinates are capable of."

It didn't seem like I had a choice in the matter, so I nodded in agreement before turning and heading off with Fuery and Havoc back to the car so they could take me to my new apartment. It didn't take long. It was only a few minutes from the base. Good. It would make things much easier for me when I had to leave for missions.

"Here you go. Do you want help unpacking or anything?" Fuery asked as we got out of the car and popped open the trunk. He handed me the apartment key. On the side, it said #41. I was on the top floor.

I shook my head no, grabbing the suitcase and throwing my bag over my shoulders. "I got it from here."

"You won't have much for furniture in there. I recommend those stores just down the street," Havoc gestured to a strip mall down the street that had a furniture mart in the center. "You still have some time today. Want us to help you load and unload stuff?"

I shook my head. "No. I don't have time today. I'll let you know when," I replied as I headed up the front steps of the apartment and opened the front doors. With a heavy sigh, I ascended the steps slowly without looking back. I'm sure I annoyed the hell out of those boys. But what the heck do I care? Not like we'd ever be friends. I didn't have the time for that, nor the skills.

Unlocking the door to my apartment, I stepped inside. There was a closet to my right. Opening it, I threw my coat inside after shrugging it off. The closet had shelves to one side, and I threw my keys onto it. Walking down the hall, there was a bathroom to my left. Peeking inside, I noticed it had a nice shower and tub. The mirror above the sink was gorgeous, oval, big, and burgundy with intricate pattern framing the glass. Stepping back into the hall, it veering to the right. On the left side was an empty room with only one window. I assumed the bedroom. I kept going and found myself in the living room, which attached to the kitchen and dining room. The only furnishings the apartment had was the fridge, microwave, and stove. I sighed. I'd have a lot to buy. Going into the bedroom, I set my suitcase on the floor along with my backpack.

I didn't have much. Only a handful of clothes. The suitcase held my favorite blanket, the blanket my own mother had made for me. The only personal item I had from before my parents died. I'd be sleeping on the floor tonight, but I had become used to that from all the nights I spent away from home back in East Command on missions.

I went to the balcony and looked down at the street below. It was empty at the moment. The city was bustling with people further down the street. From my perch, I could see the majority of the eastern half of the city. Everyone was oblivious to me, but I watched every move they made. Calculating the trajectory it would take to end their measly lives.

Wanting to get on the roof, I climbed on top of the railing and jumped to the upper window ledge, the window that was a part of my bedroom. With another jump, I grabbed the edge of the roof and pulled myself up and over. I had an even better view from here. This place was better than my old apartment. I could definitely get used to this.

However, I didn't have time. I had a mission to complete. One I had been assigned from before having arrived at Central. There was a big, bad CEO that needed to be taken out. I didn't know the details about him, nor did I want them. It was easier on everyone's end this way.

Grabbing the ledge of the building, I swung my legs over my head and swung down through my bedroom window, somersaulting to a stop. I grabbed my suitcase and pulled out the sniper rifle I had hidden beneath the clothes and took it to the roof. But, instead of staying on the roof, I ran towards the edge and jumped to the next building over. I ran over the rooftops until I got to the one I needed. From here, I needed to climb up the side of the next building to get to its roof, which was two stories higher than the one I was currently on.

With a running start, I leapt to the other side, grabbing the window's ledge with my foot and holding onto the wall with my arms. Luckily, it was an old building that had bricks jutting out unevenly. I peered inside the window and noticed no one was in the immediate room, so I pried the window open, which was easy since they hadn't locked it. Closing it behind me, I snuck out the door of the apartment and went to find the stairwell to the roof.

Once outside again, I found the corner of the building I needed and set up the gun. The CEO I needed was across the street diagonally. His office was on the second floor. Looking through the scope, I took aim. He was on the phone, completely unaware of the world around him. Unaware of the woman being mugged in the alleyway, right outside his window; unaware of the street performers trying to earn money. And least of all, unaware that his life would soon end.

Pulling the trigger, the job was done. I watched as the bullet pierced through the glass, hitting him square in the head. Killing him instantly. There was no question. Mission complete, I threw put the safety on and strapped the gun to my back and made my way back home, more slowly this time, taking in the sights.

The air was cleaner here, made it easier to breath.

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><p>Hope you all liked this first chapter. Depending on the reactions I receive, I'll post the next chapter soon. Reviews are always welcome. I like to know what my readers are thinking as they read through it.<p> 


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